Featuring a sermon puts it on the front page of the site and is the most effective way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands including all mobile platforms + newsletter.
Text-Featuring a sermon is a less expensive way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands on the right bar with optional newsletter inclusion. As low as $30/day.
“ Summary, Part 5 (final) ” CONCLUDING APPLICATIONS: 1. CHRIST’S SUFFERINGS BY THEMSELVES SHOULD SOBER AND SANCTIFY US. We don’t crack jokes after a tragedy. God inspired four tellings of the Gospel; He must have thought it worth our repeated consideration. 2. THE DISCIPLE IS NOT ABOVE HIS MASTER. Given Christ’s suffering, why should we expect better? 3. OBJECTING TO A SUFFERING SAVIOR IS A DIABOLICAL DOCTRINE. MATTHEW 16:20-23: though it was understandably hard for him to accept, Peter considered Christ’s coming crucifixion from his own fleshly, worldly perspective instead of from Christ’s. 4. WE NEED TO LOOK UNTO CHRIST. HEBREWS 12:3 states directly that Christ’s sufferings are a source of the Christian strength. 5. ALL OF THIS IS DESIGNED TO STEEL OUR MINDS AND FORTIFY OUR RESOLVE TO PERSEVERE TO THE END.
Ian Migala (10/21/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 4 ” Verses 2 and 3 begin with a subordinating conjunction (‘that’), further securing believers as the subject. The saints suffering for righteousness in the previous chapter also supports the argument. But does suffering end sin (“…for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin…”)? Yes, at least temporarily for the Christian. It is noted that suffering can have a common sanctifying affect: tragedies, disasters, and outrages tend to snap people into more principled behavior. But holy suffering (grievance over sin, forbearance of wickedness, etc.) can recommit the Christian to his faith, since he has the principle of Christ. ROMANS 6:4-7: holy suffering is a form of identification with Christ’s sufferings. 4. THE WISDOM OF THIS METHOD. Why does God have His elect suffer? Why not skip sanctification and take us straight to glorification after justification? No matter how men judge or speculate about God’s ways, they are just because God does them. Practically, sanctification helps the Christian realize God’s mercy and kindness through suffering, and the effect of freedom from the power of sin. Romans 7 frustrations are followed by Romans 8 joy.
Ian Migala (10/21/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 3 ” 2. OUR CALL TO ARMS (“…arm yourselves likewise with the same mind…”). ‘Arm’ comes from the word for ‘fortification’, as opposed to personal armor. ‘Mind’ here refers to a mindset: a disposition of heart. Together, this encourages us to adopt Christ’s sufferings into our own souls because we will suffer on earth because of Him (MATTHEW 10:25). HEBREWS 12:1-2: Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. He went on in His suffering because it was His joy to redeem His people and please His Father. The trials of this world can weary us, and so Christ’s sufferings become a source of strength. 3. THE BENEFICENT MOTIVATION (“…for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin…”). Surprisingly, there is confusion over the subject of this clause. Some believe it to be Christ. However, the full verse begins with a dependent clause (“Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered FOR US in the flesh…”), so we must look to the main sentence (“…arm yourselves likewise with the same mind…”) for the subject, which is believers (‘yourselves’). The coordinating conjunction ‘for’ follows (“…for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin…”), by rule providing the reason for the preceding phrase, thus preserving believers as the subject.
Ian Migala (10/21/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 2 ” b) His rejection: JOHN 1:11 and ISAIAH 53:3 identifies the Son of God as despised and rejected. The Pharisees and Sadducees condemned Him for not accepting their interpretations of His word. The Sadducees and the Herodians saw Him as a threat to their power. The multitudes that followed Him thinned out when things got hard. His mother misunderstood Him, and His brothers taunted Him. c) His grief and heartache at unbelief: He often pleaded, “How long will I be with you?” MATTHEW 8:14-17: Jesus took our infirmities not only on the cross, but also during His ministry, even though the beneficiaries usually didn’t respond with faith. d) His betrayal: He was sold by one of His own disciples, abandoned by others, denied by another, and condemned to death by multitudes. He did all of this for us (“Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered FOR US in the flesh…”)
Ian Migala (10/21/2013)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 1 ” [The hymn brother Randy references at the beginning of the message is *Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me?*] An attempt at peace was betrayed by the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of August 1572 in Paris, in which thousands of Huguenots, France’s Reformed Christians, were slaughtered during a royal wedding between the Catholic Princess Margaret and the Protestant King Henry III of Navarre. Following a half-century of blessed reformation, this was a frightening backlash against a spiritual revolution inspired by renewed allegiance to the Bible alone. The message for all Christians is that we are mere pilgrims: we were never promised bliss, comfort, or security on earth. The source text, 1 PETER 4:1-5, teaches a number of things in light of this: 1. THE SUFFERING OF CHRIST. Though this is basic knowledge to the Reformed Christian, taking it for granted as such risks it as a source of spiritual edification. Question 27 of the Catechism refers to this as “Christ’s humiliation.” Some aspects of His suffering: a) His being born: the King of kings, receiving praise in Heaven, becomes a little child on earth, born under the law.
